Well the physio came today and had a good look at Polo and he's in total agreement with me the front end is the problem but he doesnt actually think its anything to do with the elbow joint,which is sort of good.
Told him the history and he watched Polo trot up inhand and do some tight circles Polo looked awful on the circles!He is certain whatevers going on is further down the leg,now last week when he didnt feel good I check his legs and they were slightly filled so ive been hosing them down..I thought it was him compensating for higher up the leg.
So physio thinks its one of two things- one is tendon which is good because its just a case of rest they other is a degenerative joint disease which isnt good he's already had the Adequan which should help this type of thing and there's not alot else they can do.If thats the case then its just going to be a case of managing him and keeping him comfortable.He is reasonably sound in the field and he's happy so im not considering pts hopefully for a long time but im obviously praying its tendon and a good rest will do the job.
Physio is ringing the vet today about the options.Seems like its a case of do I go down the route of getting a definitive diagnosis with Seintigraphy(no idea if thats how you spell it),xrays,nerve blocks etc or rest the wait and see?There are positives and negatives to both they main worry is I leave it and rest him then 6months down the line he's still the same and the insurance has run out.
But if its joint disease there's nothing more to do than im already doing so I think im going to get the vet to come and scan the tendons which is none invasive and doesnt require needles for my needle phobic boy see what they show then go from there.
The more im typing the less point I see in running all those tests and upsetting him when the outcome is either rest and recovery or rest and if he's still the same retirement!
Physio did some treatment on his back..which he said is good and no problems really but he has some tightness where he thinks he's been compensating due to the discomfort in the legs.
He then had a quick look at AliG and said his back is sore:0 (bit of a guilt trip here)He thinks its been due to saddle fit and stemming from early on as it felt quite old if that makes sense?
I explained that he had a long break with the splint then ive mainly longreined and done groundwork literally riding once a week over the past couple of months which he said was good and to carry on like this.He's coming back to treat him in 2weeks as he had another appointment and is away on holiday next week.
Im waiting for his new saddle to come as ive sold my Fhoenix,the treed saddle I bought with him I know isnt a brilliant fit as he's put so much weight on,hence why ive not rode him too much in it, so i'll just keep on with the longreining until he's had his physio and the new saddle is here.He does go much better in the treeless.He said it may explain the rears but if he only does it in certain places then probably not but obviously if he's got discomfort he's not going to be at his best :))
I do have the lesson booked Sunday its paid for so im going but I'll explain and maybe do a very short spell ridden and the rest in-hand?
5 comments:
My theory of horses in pain is that they quite often work fairly well until put into a stress situation--place they don't like, something scary, etc.--then their muscles tense and the sore stuff shows up, making them react with the bad bahavior.
Could always be feet with Polo too. Frustrating having and undiagonosed lameness like that. Going for the basic tests is wise. Hopefully it's something easily cured/manageable.
That BEhavior I meant might be AliG's rearing. Toby once refused to back up in an upper level dressage test, and offered the rear--something he had never really done before. My chiropractic vet was there and I had him check him and, sure enough, he was sore in the hind end. Felt fine through the warmup, did everything else in the test OK, but felt the pain when I asked for the reinback.
Which saddle have you bought???
Curious ^-^
Maybe for Polo you could get X-rays for front legs and "the thingy" ( cannot spell it) for the tendons.
No need of nerves blocking etc ...
For AliG,I am a strong believer of work in-hand. He is also young so less riding is okay.
A scintigraph is about £1000 a time, but if you are insured I'd go for it as it would give you a definitive answer as to what is wrong in multiple places for the same test. And it would be interesting!
C
Caroline my main concern about going ahead with its the off chance the results do actually point to the old joint injury..my insurance wouldnt pay out for any treatment full stop:0
Im really torn about what to do.The test will basically show up any hot spots then xrays and scans would still be needed of the 'hot spots' to give a proper diagnosis.
The fact is rest will help if its tendon but if its degenerative joint disease then im already doing everything that you can do for that.
Couldnt get through to the vet today so will try again tomorrow talk it through with her but in fairness they are going to push for the tests.....:))
Long reined AliG today after riding Jo's daughters pony.Ali was a good boy again!
Im doing a waking night at work tonight and could only sleep for an hour today...got a cold starting believe it or not...going to be a loooooong night....just another 10hours to go:(
ps its the Vogue im buying Muriel
Post a Comment